Early stumbling over Israel — especially allowing the UK to back the highly-critical UN resolution 2334 — gave way to a form of, er, stability with the decision to call out the UN Human Rights Council’s “bias and disproportion”.
Effort: The election campaign was physically and mentally draining. Ordinarily she could be congratulated for attempting to make it through an entire campaign without the assistance of her cabinet, but the outcome means we must look back on her intentions less favourably.
She should be commended for making (a very short amount of) time to sit down with the JC the week before the election, even though she had little to say.
Areas for improvement: Where to begin?
The party conference in Manchester in October will be a key moment. If Theresa can keep her cabinet in line — not easy — and deliver an exceptional conference speech full of humility — also not easy — she might just keep her job until 2018.
But even after surviving a painful June and July, the PM remains on a precipice.
Dealing with British Jews, or producing policy on Israel, will be a very long way down her agenda.
Grade: F
Jeremy Corbyn
Position: Leader of the Opposition
Achievement: Jeremy managed what was once unthinkable, and only lost the general election by a narrow margin rather than the widely-expected landslide. He has had a truly remarkable year. It began with a party conference promise to tackle antisemitism with “every breath”, which was swiftly followed by a committee of MPs accusing him of “demonstrable incompetence” in dealing with the issue. The non-expulsion of Ken Livingstone led to a promise to re-investigate the former mayor’s comments — a pledge which has, it seems, been completely forgotten.
The result of June’s election has left Jeremy almost untouchable and cemented his position as leader. Yet he remains trapped in a sort of limbo, unclear on his Brexit position. He is a supposed PM-in-waiting who failed to win an election against one of the most unpopular leaders ever.
Effort: Jeremy’s work-rate (days off in lieu aside) has been impressive, clocking up thousands of miles attending rallies to promote his leadership, and, occasionally, Labour policies. But his interaction with mainstream British Jews remains an embarrassment. He is the only main party leader who has refused, repeatedly, to speak to all Jewish media this year.
Areas for improvement: A decent media strategy would be helpful. Finding a way to stop the tidal wave of antisemitic abuse emanating from many of his supporters would also be nice. And if Jeremy could speak out against the repeated attacks on his Jewish women MPs it might go some way to repairing the damage of the past two years.
Grade: B (nationally), F (Jewishly)
Tim Farron
Position: Former Liberal Democrat leader
Achievement: This was the year it all went wrong for Tim. After a bright start to the parliamentary term, in which he urged Jews who were turned off by Labour to switch their allegiances to his party, things unravelled.
Brexit was meant to provide him with an opportunity to promote the Lib Dems as a credible alternative, but after getting bogged down in rows over his views on gay sex, he performed poorly in the election campaign and has now departed as leader.
Effort: His swift sacking of David Ward as a candidate was a breath of fresh air in Lib Dem terms. Tim swung into action, taking advantage of rules available to him during an election period. The approach to our community summed up his leadership — apparently well intentioned, but with little to back it up.
Areas for improvement: As a backbencher Tim will now have plenty of time on his hands for his favoured extra-curricular activities, including going to church and supporting Blackburn Rovers.
If he should start missing the limelight, one way of guaranteeing headlines would be to set up an evening “in conversation” with Rabbi Joseph Dweck and sell pay-per-view tickets. But what could they possibly discuss?
Grade: D
Jeremy Newmark
Position: Jewish Labour Movement chair; defeated Labour candidate in Finchley and Golders Green
Achievement: Another Jeremy enjoying (or enduring?) a mixed year. He has seen the JLM thrive, with membership soaring amid a series of headline-grabbing initiatives and interventions. The group had a very strong showing at last autumn’s party conference, running workshops on challenging antisemitism and attracting support from dozens of MPs.
The movement’s candidates did well in June’s election. But Jeremy’s decision to stand for Labour in the country’s most Jewish constituency drew a wave of criticism with accusations that he was “koshering” Corbynism.
Effort: A relentless campaigner, Jeremy has criss-crossed the country promoting the JLM and working hard — often in the face of outright antisemitic abuse — to urge Labour members to keep the Jewish community’s concerns in mind.
Areas for improvement: Despite its successes in 2016-17, the JLM under Jeremy is in a tricky position. He spent the election campaign telling Jewish voters to back him because Corbyn would not win, but then he nearly did. If another election is called in the coming year, senior communal figures may break ranks and implore Jeremy to decide where he stands on Corbyn once and for all. With his namesake’s electability now seemingly not in question, like many other Labour moderates, Jeremy needs a clearer explanation of his own position.
Grade: B
Boris Johnson
Position: Foreign Secretary
Achievement: A strangely publicity-shy visit to Israel in March summed up Boris’s year. On the one hand he is the government’s most-recognisable character both at home and abroad, on the other, Theresa May kept him off the radar and under wraps. Although he has largely been freed from those shackles since the election, it is hard to see what Boris has achieved at the Foreign Office. In the Commons chamber he has been as diplomatic on Israel and the Palestinians as could realistically be expected from a man forced to apologise to so many, so often. While there have been no major achievements there have also been no major cock-ups, which in Boris’s case is perhaps an achievement in itself.
Effort: His part-time pursuit — calculating how he can propel himself into Number 10 — has so far yielded few returns. The fallout from Brexit has continued to do him immense damage and his stock is surely lower this summer than last. However hard he tries to present himself as a statesman, it will take years to shake off a decade of jokes, jibes and general mugwumpery.
Areas for improvement: Keeping a low profile does not come naturally, but if Boris can manage it for the next 12 months he might find himself more electable as the next Tory leader than he is now. But that is a very big “might”. As far as the Jewish community is concerned, it is hard to tell whether we would rather have him fully engaged and regularly commenting on the Middle East, or posted on a six-month one-way diplomatic visit to Papua New Guinea.
Grade: D
Luciana Berger
Position: Labour MP for Liverpool Wavertree, parliamentary chair of JLM
Achievement: Five weeks after giving birth to her first child, Luciana was faced with Theresa May calling the snap general election. She might have decided this was the perfect moment to call it a day in Westminster. Out of Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow cabinet and with Labour (at that point) seemingly years away from regaining power, it must have crossed her mind that her abilities would be better put to use in the private sector or at a charity promoting one of the issues she has campaigned so hard on. Instead, with baby Amélie in tow, she hit the campaign trail and was rewarded with an increased majority just shy of an astonishing 30,000 votes, making her, technically, one of the safest Labour MPs in the country.
Effort: Given the torrent of online and real-life abuse she faces there must be days when Luciana feels like pulling the duvet over her head and simply not bothering. But she never takes that approach and ran a brilliant election campaign in Wavertree just months after giving birth.
Areas for improvement: The challenge earlier this month from hard-left activists within her own constituency party leaves Luciana with a predicament. They are likely to do their utmost to deselect her. How long can anyone reasonably be expected to put up with this stuff? She can continue her impressive campaigning from the backbenches and hold both the government and her own party leadership to account. But to what end? Luciana, her constituents, the Jewish community and indeed the country, deserve better than for MPs to be treated like this.
Grade: A-
Andrew Percy
Position: Conservative MP for Brigg and Goole
Achievement: Another case of an MP who started the year very much on the up, as Northern Powerhouse Minister, and ends the political term on the backbenches. But in Andrew’s case, it was his own decision to retreat from the frontline. He rejected the opportunity to return to his ministerial role after the election, but has not fully explained why. Pelted with abuse during the campaign, he described his disgust at how politics had turned nasty.
Effort: Ironically, Andrew may find being out of government allows him greater scope for achievement. Since leaving the frontbench he’s commented in Commons debates, holding ministers to account, representing constituents, and discussing two of his favourite loves — Israel and Canada.
His determination to speak in defence of the former cannot be questioned.
Areas for improvement: What happens next for this promising politician still in his thirties is very much down to Andrew himself. He had intended to quit Parliament in 2020, but the early election means he will be around until 2022.
If he can be convinced to return to government before then, he could yet make an immense contribution to public life.
Grade: A-
Amber Rudd
Position: Home Secretary
Achievement: Amber made a promising start with a warm speech at a communal charity dinner last September, her first real engagement with British Jewry. That was followed by a Board of Deputies Chanukah party speech which was well-received. But other than re-confirming funding for the Community Security Trust, there has been little by way of genuine achievement.
Effort: Understandably tied up dealing with the terror attacks in Britain in recent months, Amber’s attention has largely been elsewhere. When called on she has risen to the challenge, as noted above.
Areas for improvement: The biggest communal problem in her in-tray is the ongoing row over Hezbollah and the non-proscription of its “political” wing in Britain. The summer break will provide some leeway, but Amber needs to do her homework and provide substantial answers on the way ahead, long before next year’s Al-Quds Day rally and flag-waving bonanza.
Grade: B
